^{photo by call me C from the Stranger flickr pool}

Driving home from vacation last night, there was a big, full moon over Anacortes. Finally.

There was also a bunch of people hanging around the Department of Safety for the kick off of the town's annual What the Heck Fest.

Here is the official schedule of events:

FRIDAY, JULY 18th Croatian Club 5pm – 8pm (official Heck Fest grand opening ceremonies and dinner show) D+ Sandman Katy Davidson

City Hall
8pm – 1am
Karl Blau
Lucky Dragons
The Moore Brothers with Owl & the Pussycat
Calvin Johnson & Ian Svenonius
Mt. Eerie

FRIDAY NIGHT JOINT COVER AT THE BARS:
Watertown Pub: ...WORMS, Love Tan
Brown Lantern: Bryan, Frank & Bob, the Moondoggies

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SATURDAY, JULY 19th
Causland Park
noon – 7pm
(all day sushi show in the park)
Caulfield & His Magical Violin
Desolation Wilderness
Bryce Panic/Better Bizness Bureau
Gift Machine
Nate Ashley
Lonely Forest

City Hall
7pm – 1am
Photosynthesis
Graves
Angelo Spencer
Ô Paon
Your Heart Breaks
Little Wings
Kimya Dawson

SATURDAY NIGHT JOINT COVER AT THE BARS:
Watertown Pub: ザ　ジョージ　マイケルス　バンド, the Coconut Coolouts, Triumph of Lethargy Skinned Alive To Death
Brown Lantern: Yes, Oh Yes, TacocaT, See Me River

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SUNDAY, JULY 20th
11am “brunch show” at Anderson’s Store on Guemes Island:
Real Live Tigers, Dennis Driscoll, Solvents!

Causland Park
noon – 2pm
“Game Day” curated by the Blow

City Hall
2pm – 5:30pm
Mirah & Spectratone International performing “Share This Place”
Alyse Emdur (films)
Stella Marrs (films)
Oliver Orion-Miles
Honcho #1 (short film)

Department of Safety
6pm – 10pm
A Rich Jensen Intensive
Al Larsen
LAKE
(also: Jib Kidder Chalk Space – an all day superchalking and boomboxing)

ALL PASSES ARE NOW SOLD OUT.

Some tickets will be available at the door to the City Hall shows ($10), and the show on Sat. afternoon in the park is free.

Where are you going?
Kevin: London, Wales, Amsterdam, France, and Spain.

Who are you touring with?
I'm traveling and performing by my lonesome self as KJ Sawka. Climbing the European hills.

What cities are you playing?
July 18th - Swansea, Wales - Monkey Café & Bar
July 19th - UK - Near London - Glade Festival
July 21st - Winston Kingdom, Warmoesstraat
July 24th - Barcelona - La Plataforma
July 25th - Metz - Le Tunnel, Metz
July 26th - Lille - Le Reve d'Hervrt

How did the tour get set up?
I did a tour of the UK last year. I'm playing Glade Festival again this year. My friend Nick who promotes, books bands, and who is in a live dnb band set up most of the tour.

What will you be playing?
I will be playing live smashing drum n' bass beats and some more moderate dance floor riddims for people’s enjoyment.

What are you looking forward to over there?
People’s enjoyment.

How are you bringing over your drums?
I'm just bringing over my own electronics. I’m renting a kit.

Do you have to worry about converters for the power?
No worries, but I do need power converters for everything. It can be a real big pain.

Are you worried about other people touching your drums?
I’d like to think I’m the one with all the touch. And I'd rather other people only touch the cymbals with their tongues.

Are you worried about other people touching you?
No, not at all. I love to hug.

Are you afraid of flying?
Absolutely not. When the plane lifts off, I sing out loud.

What will you be singing this trip?
I think I’ll go with Joe Cocker’s “Up Where We Belong” from An Officer and a Gentleman. I love that song. Love lifts us up where we belong, you know?

Yes. I know.
Where eagles fly.

Many Seattleites sing the praises of Palace Kitchen’s hamburger. I’m willing to concede that it may very well be the best burger in Seattle (or at least in the top 3), but Tom Douglas’s restaurant doesn’t blast Pantera while you chow down on the American classic. I guess Palace doesn’t really cater to my demographic. I have to go all the way to the Midwest to savor an exquisite burger under prime conditions.

Situated in Chicago’s Avondale neighborhood, Kuma’s Corner is my kind of eatery. Heavy metal blares throughout the restaurant at all times. The beer selection is snobby in the best possible way (PBR is the only domestic brew available). And the burgers are truly delicious. Of the 22 burgers on the menu, 20 are named after metal bands. Highlights include the Slayer, featuring a pile of fries topped with a half-pound burger, chili, cherry peppers, andouille, onions, jack cheese, and “Anger.” The Clutch burger features four kinds of cheese. The Goblin Cock comes with a quarter-pound hot dog on top. They also offer a pulled-pork sandwich (the Pig Destroyer) and a buffalo chicken sandwich (the Hate Beak). I’ve sampled five menu items and was blown away by all of them.

I’m crossing my fingers for a Seattle franchise.

Yesterday a very pregnant Gwen Stefani and her Bush singing husband (Gavin Rossdale) sat in Roger Federer's Wimbledon box. They cheered and cheered but could not help Federer win his sixth consecutive Wimbledon Tennis Championship. Spain's Rafael Nadal won in 5 sets. Stefani didn't watch the whole match. Maybe she left to have the baby.

Here's Gavin talking about his new album Wanderlust.

You got the Duke Spirit, My Bloody Valentine, Band of Horses, Battles, Cat Power, Girl Talk, Jay Z, Judas Priest, Kings of Leon, MGMT, Mogwai, the Streets, Holy Fuck, Santogold, and Neil Young.

Damn.

The Festival runs from the 3rd to the 7th of July.

You probably need to bring your own fireworks.

This one completely confirmed, for Portland's MusicFestNW, which goes head to head with happens around the same time as Seattle's own Bumbershoot, and which is apparently some kind of music festival that happens in the Northwest.

Six hours later after a nap on a ferry ride I decide to put on something a little more upbeat. I’ve been picking records I thought she would enjoy (or at least tolerate) all day, now I’m going to show my dad what Daughters sounds like. They rile my mother’s feathers (obviously), and she demands I turn it off. Then she takes it a step further: “All the music you’ve played today has been annoying.” I am aghast. She didn’t like anything I picked for her – She & Him, Portishead S/T, M. Ward’s Post War, Sleeping People (that one was more for me). “What about Elliott Smith? I played one of his records and you like him,” I say.

“I don’t remember hearing that.” (She asked if it was Kings of Convenience when I put it on, one of the few bands I’ve actually sold her on)
“What about Fleet Foxes? You liked them, right?”
“Eh,” she mutters, “Parts.”

I put on Magical Mystery Tour. After a few songs she is at ease. “It’s nice to finally hear something I’m comfortable with,” she says. The song playing as she says this: “Your Mother Should Know.” I do not believe the coincidence to be premeditated.

EYE wrote:

Dear Seattle and Stranger lookers. Thank you for such a experiencing show when we were there. Seattle has best crowd. I remember and think you. See you in 88. – EYE

I replied and sent our collective love back at him. I also sent him a copy of The Kweeks Of Kookatumdee by Bill Peet.

Far off somewhere in the Tumbuzzaroo Sea, On the jungle island of Kookatumdee, There once lived a flock of strange, birdlike things. Called kweeks, with huge beaks and undersized wings. With no wild beasts living there to endanger the kweeks, Their only problem was eating, just filling their beaks.

Missoula, Montana's Total Fest is pretty much the best DIY rock festival on the planet. I went last year with Akimbo, barfed on all their stuff, and had the time of my life. One giant venue with three stages, great bands from all across the country, barbecues, river floating, record swaps, beer - you'd be hard pressed to find a more laid-back, fun festival with such good bands anywhere else. This year looks like it's going to be just as awesome, with Saviours, Akimbo, Federation X, Triclops!, Titan, Part Man Part Horse, Black Eyes and Neckties, the Intelligence, the Lights, the Trucks, and the Narrows, just to name a few. The full list can be found here. Total Fest VII takes place August 14-16.

I left there in order to catch Seattle's own Lawnchair Generals on the main stage. They represented us quite nicely, mixing little homages to Detroit techno in their set. Nice work, and despite being able to see them at home, I still stuck around for the better part of an hour, watching the Detroit crowd experience how we do things in the 206.

After brief stops by the other stages, I had to catch the tail end of Paco Osuna's set. Chain-smoking while he DJs, it's hard to tell if he's even enjoying himself, but I'll be damned if he didn't slay the crowd once again. I hope Decibel can bring him in. He was followed by M_nus' princess, Magda, but she's bored me enough over time that I didn't feel compelled to stick around.

Superstar DJ Benny Benassi had no shortage of hero-worship up on the Pioneer stage. That space was filled to the brim with what a friend calls "guido ravers," with Benassi having to make multiple calls for the crowd to move back. I was not into his brand of electrohouse, but I'm not going to fault the kids for their good time. They didn't annoy me until later.

My good time came shortly after at the underground stage, where Kenny Larkin prevailed despite technical issues, throwing down the most "Detroit" set I'd heard all festival. He shrugged off the audio cutting out during mixes, and instead jumped around, with a little bit of house, a little bit of electro, and plenty of Techno (with a capital T). Lovely.

Carl Craig and Underground Resistance's aural destruction after the jump.

That's not to say people weren't moving. Early on, house heads had the choice between Number 9 and DJ Minx, followed by John Jorg and Mike Grant, and all involved delivered, with Grant's set complemented by the energetic dancer he had on stage.

It's hard to get into the more heady acts at a festival like this. Deepchord played on the main stage, and their set was wonderfully dubby and spacious ("cave techno"). On the one hand, it was great to see an act like that on the big stage, not relegated to some stage ghetto. On the other hand, their music deserves time and an opportunity to wash over you, and this wasn't that. If they could play at 4am as everyone was winding down, that'd be ideal. But of course this is a minor gripe at most. Imperfect space or not, Deepchord lived up to expectations.

The first (surprising) Seattle representation followed Deepchord, with our own Bruno Pronsato taking the stage as half of Half Hawaii. The duo's live set transitioned the crowd into more dance-oriented fare, away from Deepchord's dub and playing perfectly into Zip's wonderfully dynamic set.

More on Day One after the jump.

Even more than with our own Decibel or Mutek, DEMF has been plagued by cashflow issues, organizational issues, and all kinds of general drama, but in the last few years since Detroit-area powerhouse promoters Paxahau took the reins, things have gotten a lot more quiet and predictable. In early years there was desperation over whether each year would be the festival's last, but now it's matured to the point where it seems external factors (will gas prices keep people away?) rather than internal politics that will be the event's downfall (hopefully years away, if ever).

I got into town yesterday and so far things are off to a slow start. There was a big Godfathers of Techno party that had a similarly slow start, despite Juan Atkins, Eddie Fowlkes and Scan 7 on the bill (but I was there during the first half hour, far too early to make a call on how the night went). The official pre-party was headlined by the creator of one of last year's finest techno albums, Efdemin, but he stayed a little too dubby for my tastes, when all I really wanted to hear was his Chicago house gem "Just a Track." Ryan Elliott picked up the tempo, but it still wasn't enough. Downstairs Detroit's own Guys on Drugs were playing a great evil basement minimal set, but it was too hot, sweaty, and otherwise miserable to put up with the intermittent sound issues. In all it was a bit underwhelming, but for $5 it's hardly worth much complaint.

Left around three and went to grab some food. A brawl nearly broke out despite the table full of law enforcement officers as the drunks commingled. I ate my hot dogs in peace, then drove back to my hotel with the sounds of Terrence Parker on the radio. Welcome to Detroit indeed.

And now it's time for the festival. More later.

The whole review is here.

And, since we're on the subject of Badu, here is possibly the best first sentence Charles Mudede's ever written.

Instead of its usual national tour, Ozzfest has been shortened to one date this year, August 9th at Pizza Hut Park in Dallas. Ozzy and Metallica are the headliners, accompanied by a slough of utter crap, save for the headliners of the "Texas Stage" the Sword, Soilent Green, and the hesitant respect Serj Tankian has earned for being both forward thinking and articulate. Mongoloid metal-heads around the country are fuming that this suck-fest is not coming to their backyard, and have began typing hateful diarrhea on the Ozzfest message board before un-clenching their fists:

"This Suck This is bullshit ozzfest is only going to be a one day show in TX. Well I am gland that all of other summer tour is not like this like warped tour now we got a new summer tour call rockstar mayhem tour I hope it better than ozzfest"

"really it be ok. with two ass hole who don't know how run a show are their show now. an Texas does have hurricanes dumb ass is was called Rita. And where could put ozzfest other then Texas. Try California. we don't fuck our sister. imbreaded ass clowns"

The full line-up:

OZZY OSBOURNE / METALLICA / SERJ TANKIAN / HELLYEAH / JONATHAN DAVIS / CAVALERA CONSPIRACY / SHADOWS FALL / APOCALYPTICA / IN THIS MOMENT / All-Star Tribute To "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott

Second Stage: / SEVENDUST / DEVILDRIVER / KINGDOM OF SORROW / SOILENT GREEN / WITCHCRAFT / GOATWHORE

Texas (Third) Stage:
THE SWORD / DROWNING POOL / RIGOR MORTIS

Furious that this sadness parade isn't coming to Seattle? Feel free to delight us with angry sentence fragments in our comments section.

(ht Idolator)

Alas, Robyn's time with "The View" has forced her to push planned dates in Portland on May 13 at Berbati's Pan and Seattle May 14 at Neumos back to August to accommodate the taping. That's a bummer, Pac NW, but think about it this way: there's another North American Robyn tour in the works, and it is definitely coming your way.

Maybe we'll just publish a link to our archives for that one.